An Old Friend Returns

Maybe you were living on the moon when the first Beverly Hills Cop was released in 1984, and if so, you might never have met the iconic Serge, played to comedic perfection by my friend, Bronson Pinchot.

And maybe even since then, you have never had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of the larger-than-life character that he seemingly pulled out of a hat on the spur of the moment - a fact that does not reside far from the truth because much of that scene with Eddie Murphy was ad-libbed. Indeed, Bronson resurrected the character again in 1994’s Beverly Hills Cop 3, with another brilliant off-the-cuff performance.

Now fast forward three decades and break out the popcorn, because Serge is back. Boy is he ever. Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F was released yesterday on Netflix, and I’m still laughing a day later. You will be, too. Gather the family after the cookout and before the fireworks tonight and settle in for some fun.

And by the way, send an amen if you see a Serge spin-off as a no-brainer. Plainly obvious from my perch here in the sunny South is the fact that one of the most loveable characters ever to grace a screen has more lives than the proverbial cat with nine. Are you listening, Jerry Bruckheimer?